William H. Orem, Ph.D.
William Orem (Bill), Ph.D. is a Supervisory Research Chemist (Geochemist) and Principal Investigator with the USGS Geology, Energy & Minerals (GEM) Science Center in Reston, VA.
Professional Experience
Research Chemist, U.S. Geological Survey (1984-present)
Adjunct Faculty, University of Maryland, Department of Geology (1982-1992)
National Research Council Postdoctoral Associate (1982-1984)
Education and Certifications
B.S. Chemistry, Lehigh University
M.S. Oceanography, University of Delaware
Ph.D. Chemistry, University of New Hampshire
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 129
Organic geochemistry and toxicology of a stream impacted by unconventional oil and gas wastewater disposal operations
Water and sediment extracts samples were analyzed for extractable hydrocarbons by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) using an Agilent (Agilent Technologies, Palo Alto, CA, USA) 7890 series GC and 5975 electron ionization (EI) mass selective detector (MSD) operated in scan mode. Agilent ChemStation software was used for data acquisition and analysis (version E.02.00.493 on GC/MS computer
Authors
William H. Orem, Matthew S. Varonka, Lynn M. Crosby, Karl B. Haase, Keith A. Loftin, Michelle L. Hladik, Denise M. Akob, Calin Tatu, Adam C. Mumford, Jeanne B. Jaeschke, Anne L. Bates, Tiffani Schell, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli
Changes in microbial communities and associated water and gas geochemistry across a sulfate gradient in coal beds: Powder River Basin, USA
Competition between microbial sulfate reduction and methanogenesis drives cycling of fossil carbon and generation of CH4 in sedimentary basins. However, little is understood about the fundamental relationship between subsurface aqueous geochemistry and microbiology that drives these processes. Here we relate elemental and isotopic geochemistry of coal-associated water and gas to the microbial comm
Authors
Hannah Schweitzer, Daniel Ritter, Jennifer McIntosh, Elliott Barnhart, Alfred B. Cunningham, David Vinson, William H. Orem, Matthew W. Fields
DDT and related compounds in pore water of shallow sediments on the Palos Verdes Shelf, California, USA
For nearly two and a half decades following World War II, production wastes from the world's largest manufacturer of technical DDT (1-chloro-4-[2,2,2-trichloro-1-(4-chlorophenyl)ethyl]benzene) were discharged into sewers of Los Angeles County. Following treatment, the wastes were released via a submarine outfall system to nearshore coastal waters where a portion accumulated in shallow sediments of
Authors
Robert P. Eganhouse, Erica L. DiFilippo, James Pontolillo, William H. Orem, Paul C. Hackley, Brian Edwards
Spatial dependence of reduced sulfur in Everglades dissolved organic matter controlled by sulfate enrichment
Sulfate inputs to the Florida Everglades stimulate sulfidic conditions in freshwater wetland sediments that affect ecological and biogeochemical processes. An unexplored implication of sulfate enrichment is alteration of the content and speciation of sulfur in dissolved organic matter (DOM), which influences the reactivity of DOM with trace metals. Here, we describe the vertical and lateral spatia
Authors
Brett A. Poulin, Joseph N. Ryan, Kathryn L. Nagy, Aron Stubbins, Thorsten Dittmar, William H. Orem, David P. Krabbenhoft, George R. Aiken
Geogenic organic contaminants in the low-rank coal-bearing Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer of East Texas, USA
The organic composition of groundwater along the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer in East Texas (USA), sampled from rural wells in May and September 2015, was examined as part of a larger study of the potential health and environmental effects of organic compounds derived from low-rank coals. The quality of water from the low-rank coal-bearing Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer is a potential environmental concern and
Authors
Jayeeta Chakraborty, Matthew S. Varonka, William H. Orem, Robert B. Finkelman, William Manton
Final synthesis report for factors controlling DDE dechlorination rates on the palos verdes shelf: A field and laboratory investigation
This project was organized into separate field and laboratory studies aimed at answering “18
questions” in the original Scope of Work (cf., section 2 of this report, Background, for
explanation). Because of some early results, certain questions became irrelevant and were,
therefore, not pursued. In other cases, there simply was not enough time to complete the
originally planned studies. On the oth
Authors
Robert P. Eganhouse, William H. Orem, Martin Reinhard
Final data report for factors controlling DDE dechlorination rates on the Palos Verdes Shelf: A field and laboratory investigation
This data report provides a compilation of information developed over the last 6+ years by a
multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional research team. The overall goal of this work has been to
identify the biological, chemical, and physical factors that control rates of reductive
dechlorination of DDE and DDMU in sediments of the Palos Verdes Shelf (PVS). More specific
questions and objectives are de
Authors
Robert P. Eganhouse, James Pontolillo, William H. Orem, Daniel M. Webster, Paul C. Hackley, Brian D. Edwards, Kurt J. Rosenberger, Patrick Dickhudt, Christopher R. Sherwood, Martin Reinhard, Sujie Qin, Jennifer Dougherty, Gary Hopkins, Ian Marshall, Alfred Spormann
Microbial methane from in situ biodegradation of coal and shale: A review and reevaluation of hydrogen and carbon isotope signatures
Stable carbon and hydrogen isotope signatures of methane, water, and inorganic carbon are widely utilized in natural gas systems for distinguishing microbial and thermogenic methane and for delineating methanogenic pathways (acetoclastic, hydrogenotrophic, and/or methylotrophic methanogenesis). Recent studies of coal and shale gas systems have characterized in situ microbial communities and provid
Authors
David S. Vinson, Neal E. Blair, Anna M. Martini, Steve Larter, William H. Orem, Jennifer C. McIntosh
Environmental signatures and effects of an oil and gas wastewater spill in the Williston Basin, North Dakota
Wastewaters from oil and gas development pose largely unknown risks to environmental resources. In January 2015, 11.4 M L (million liters) of wastewater (300 g/L TDS) from oil production in the Williston Basin was reported to have leaked from a pipeline, spilling into Blacktail Creek, North Dakota. Geochemical and biological samples were collected in February and June 2015 to identify geochemical
Authors
Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Katherine Skalak, D.B. Kent, Mark A. Engle, Adam J. Benthem, Adam Mumford, Karl B. Haase, Aïda M. Farag, David Harper, S. C. Nagel, Luke R. Iwanowicz, William H. Orem, Denise M. Akob, Jeanne B. Jaeschke, Joel M. Galloway, Matthias Kohler, Deborah L. Stoliker, Glenn D. Jolly
Enhanced coal-dependent methanogenesis coupled with algal biofuels: Potential water recycle and carbon capture
Many coal beds contain microbial communities that can convert coal to natural gas (coalbed methane). Native microorganisms were obtained from Powder River Basin (PRB) coal seams with a diffusive microbial sampler placed downhole and used as an inoculum for enrichments with different nutrients to investigate microbially-enhanced coalbed methane production (MECoM). Coal-dependent methanogenesis more
Authors
Elliott P. Barnhart, Katherine J. Davis, Matthew S. Varonka, William H. Orem, Alfred B. Cunningham, Bradley D. Ramsay, Matthew W. Fields
Uranium delivery and uptake in a montane wetland, north-central Colorado, USA
Comprehensive sampling of peat, underlying lakebed sediments, and coexisting waters of a naturally uraniferous montane wetland are combined with hydrologic measurements to define the important controls on uranium (U) supply and uptake. The major source of U to the wetland is groundwater flowing through locally fractured and faulted granite gneiss of Proterozoic age. Dissolved U concentrations in f
Authors
R. Randall Schumann, Robert A. Zielinski, James K. Otton, Michael P. Pantea, William H. Orem
Endocrine disrupting activities of surface water associated with a West Virginia oil and gas industry wastewater disposal site
Currently, >95% of end disposal of hydraulic fracturing wastewater from unconventional oil and gas operations in the US occurs via injection wells. Key data gaps exist in understanding the potential impact of underground injection on surface water quality and environmental health. The goal of this study was to assess endocrine disrupting activity in surface water at a West Virginia injection well
Authors
Christopher D. Kassotis, Luke R. Iwanowicz, Denise M. Akob, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Adam Mumford, William H. Orem, Susan C. Nagel
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 129
Organic geochemistry and toxicology of a stream impacted by unconventional oil and gas wastewater disposal operations
Water and sediment extracts samples were analyzed for extractable hydrocarbons by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) using an Agilent (Agilent Technologies, Palo Alto, CA, USA) 7890 series GC and 5975 electron ionization (EI) mass selective detector (MSD) operated in scan mode. Agilent ChemStation software was used for data acquisition and analysis (version E.02.00.493 on GC/MS computer
Authors
William H. Orem, Matthew S. Varonka, Lynn M. Crosby, Karl B. Haase, Keith A. Loftin, Michelle L. Hladik, Denise M. Akob, Calin Tatu, Adam C. Mumford, Jeanne B. Jaeschke, Anne L. Bates, Tiffani Schell, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli
Changes in microbial communities and associated water and gas geochemistry across a sulfate gradient in coal beds: Powder River Basin, USA
Competition between microbial sulfate reduction and methanogenesis drives cycling of fossil carbon and generation of CH4 in sedimentary basins. However, little is understood about the fundamental relationship between subsurface aqueous geochemistry and microbiology that drives these processes. Here we relate elemental and isotopic geochemistry of coal-associated water and gas to the microbial comm
Authors
Hannah Schweitzer, Daniel Ritter, Jennifer McIntosh, Elliott Barnhart, Alfred B. Cunningham, David Vinson, William H. Orem, Matthew W. Fields
DDT and related compounds in pore water of shallow sediments on the Palos Verdes Shelf, California, USA
For nearly two and a half decades following World War II, production wastes from the world's largest manufacturer of technical DDT (1-chloro-4-[2,2,2-trichloro-1-(4-chlorophenyl)ethyl]benzene) were discharged into sewers of Los Angeles County. Following treatment, the wastes were released via a submarine outfall system to nearshore coastal waters where a portion accumulated in shallow sediments of
Authors
Robert P. Eganhouse, Erica L. DiFilippo, James Pontolillo, William H. Orem, Paul C. Hackley, Brian Edwards
Spatial dependence of reduced sulfur in Everglades dissolved organic matter controlled by sulfate enrichment
Sulfate inputs to the Florida Everglades stimulate sulfidic conditions in freshwater wetland sediments that affect ecological and biogeochemical processes. An unexplored implication of sulfate enrichment is alteration of the content and speciation of sulfur in dissolved organic matter (DOM), which influences the reactivity of DOM with trace metals. Here, we describe the vertical and lateral spatia
Authors
Brett A. Poulin, Joseph N. Ryan, Kathryn L. Nagy, Aron Stubbins, Thorsten Dittmar, William H. Orem, David P. Krabbenhoft, George R. Aiken
Geogenic organic contaminants in the low-rank coal-bearing Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer of East Texas, USA
The organic composition of groundwater along the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer in East Texas (USA), sampled from rural wells in May and September 2015, was examined as part of a larger study of the potential health and environmental effects of organic compounds derived from low-rank coals. The quality of water from the low-rank coal-bearing Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer is a potential environmental concern and
Authors
Jayeeta Chakraborty, Matthew S. Varonka, William H. Orem, Robert B. Finkelman, William Manton
Final synthesis report for factors controlling DDE dechlorination rates on the palos verdes shelf: A field and laboratory investigation
This project was organized into separate field and laboratory studies aimed at answering “18
questions” in the original Scope of Work (cf., section 2 of this report, Background, for
explanation). Because of some early results, certain questions became irrelevant and were,
therefore, not pursued. In other cases, there simply was not enough time to complete the
originally planned studies. On the oth
Authors
Robert P. Eganhouse, William H. Orem, Martin Reinhard
Final data report for factors controlling DDE dechlorination rates on the Palos Verdes Shelf: A field and laboratory investigation
This data report provides a compilation of information developed over the last 6+ years by a
multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional research team. The overall goal of this work has been to
identify the biological, chemical, and physical factors that control rates of reductive
dechlorination of DDE and DDMU in sediments of the Palos Verdes Shelf (PVS). More specific
questions and objectives are de
Authors
Robert P. Eganhouse, James Pontolillo, William H. Orem, Daniel M. Webster, Paul C. Hackley, Brian D. Edwards, Kurt J. Rosenberger, Patrick Dickhudt, Christopher R. Sherwood, Martin Reinhard, Sujie Qin, Jennifer Dougherty, Gary Hopkins, Ian Marshall, Alfred Spormann
Microbial methane from in situ biodegradation of coal and shale: A review and reevaluation of hydrogen and carbon isotope signatures
Stable carbon and hydrogen isotope signatures of methane, water, and inorganic carbon are widely utilized in natural gas systems for distinguishing microbial and thermogenic methane and for delineating methanogenic pathways (acetoclastic, hydrogenotrophic, and/or methylotrophic methanogenesis). Recent studies of coal and shale gas systems have characterized in situ microbial communities and provid
Authors
David S. Vinson, Neal E. Blair, Anna M. Martini, Steve Larter, William H. Orem, Jennifer C. McIntosh
Environmental signatures and effects of an oil and gas wastewater spill in the Williston Basin, North Dakota
Wastewaters from oil and gas development pose largely unknown risks to environmental resources. In January 2015, 11.4 M L (million liters) of wastewater (300 g/L TDS) from oil production in the Williston Basin was reported to have leaked from a pipeline, spilling into Blacktail Creek, North Dakota. Geochemical and biological samples were collected in February and June 2015 to identify geochemical
Authors
Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Katherine Skalak, D.B. Kent, Mark A. Engle, Adam J. Benthem, Adam Mumford, Karl B. Haase, Aïda M. Farag, David Harper, S. C. Nagel, Luke R. Iwanowicz, William H. Orem, Denise M. Akob, Jeanne B. Jaeschke, Joel M. Galloway, Matthias Kohler, Deborah L. Stoliker, Glenn D. Jolly
Enhanced coal-dependent methanogenesis coupled with algal biofuels: Potential water recycle and carbon capture
Many coal beds contain microbial communities that can convert coal to natural gas (coalbed methane). Native microorganisms were obtained from Powder River Basin (PRB) coal seams with a diffusive microbial sampler placed downhole and used as an inoculum for enrichments with different nutrients to investigate microbially-enhanced coalbed methane production (MECoM). Coal-dependent methanogenesis more
Authors
Elliott P. Barnhart, Katherine J. Davis, Matthew S. Varonka, William H. Orem, Alfred B. Cunningham, Bradley D. Ramsay, Matthew W. Fields
Uranium delivery and uptake in a montane wetland, north-central Colorado, USA
Comprehensive sampling of peat, underlying lakebed sediments, and coexisting waters of a naturally uraniferous montane wetland are combined with hydrologic measurements to define the important controls on uranium (U) supply and uptake. The major source of U to the wetland is groundwater flowing through locally fractured and faulted granite gneiss of Proterozoic age. Dissolved U concentrations in f
Authors
R. Randall Schumann, Robert A. Zielinski, James K. Otton, Michael P. Pantea, William H. Orem
Endocrine disrupting activities of surface water associated with a West Virginia oil and gas industry wastewater disposal site
Currently, >95% of end disposal of hydraulic fracturing wastewater from unconventional oil and gas operations in the US occurs via injection wells. Key data gaps exist in understanding the potential impact of underground injection on surface water quality and environmental health. The goal of this study was to assess endocrine disrupting activity in surface water at a West Virginia injection well
Authors
Christopher D. Kassotis, Luke R. Iwanowicz, Denise M. Akob, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Adam Mumford, William H. Orem, Susan C. Nagel